Systems and methods for assigning a customer device to a group of customer devices for the transmission of broadband data signals

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods are provided for assigning a customer device to a group of customer devices for the transmission of broadband data signals. A communications signal output by a customer device associated with a customer of the service provider may be received by a service provider system. The service provider system may be associated with the service provider, and the service provider system may include one or more computers. The received communications signal may be processed by the service provider system to determine a linear impairment associated with the customer device. Based at least in part on the linear impairment, a frequency range at which communications will be output by the service provider system for receipt by the customer device may be determined.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is related to co-pending patent application Ser. No.______ (Attorney Docket 24663-0030), filed May 9, 2011, and entitled“Systems and Methods for Assigning Customers to Groups for theTransmission of Broadband Data Signals.”

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of the invention relate generally to the transmission ofbroadband data streams to recipients, and more particularly, to theassignment of recipients to groups for the transmission of broadbanddata streams.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is common for headend systems associated with service providers, suchas a cable service provider system, to output broadband data signals forreceipt by customer devices. Downstream data signals are typicallyoutput at one or more frequencies included in a downstream frequencyband. For example, downstream data signals are commonly output within afrequency range of eighty-eight megahertz (88 MHz) to one gigahertz (1GHz). Customer devices receive and process these data signals in orderto provide various services, such as cable and telephone services, tousers.

However, linear impairments and other distortions are typicallyintroduced by a transmission network and associated with the data streamtransmissions. Additionally, attenuation losses typically occur withinthe transmission network. These impairments and losses increase as thedownstream transmission frequency increases. Additionally, as physicalequipment, such as coaxial cable lines, degrades over time, the abilityto transmit higher frequency signals to the customer devices is lost.Accordingly, improved systems and methods for determining frequencies atwhich broadband data streams are transmitted to customer devices aredesirable. Additionally, improved systems and methods for assigning acustomer to a group for the transmission of broadband data streams aredesirable.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Some or all of the above needs and/or problems may be addressed bycertain embodiments of the invention. Embodiments of the invention mayinclude systems and methods for assigning customers to groups for thetransmission of broadband data signals. In one embodiment, a method forassigning a customer device to a group for the transmission of broadbanddata signals may be provided. A communications signal output by acustomer device associated with a customer of the service provider maybe received by a service provider system. The service provider systemmay be associated with the service provider, and the service providersystem may include one or more computers. The received communicationssignal may be processed by the service provider system to determine alinear impairment associated with the customer device. Based at least inpart on the linear impairment, a frequency range at which communicationswill be output by the service provider system for receipt by thecustomer device may be determined.

In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, a system forassigning a customer device to a group for the transmission of broadbanddata signals may be provided. The system may include at least onecommunications interface and at least one processor. The at least onecommunications interface may be configured to receive a communicationssignal output be a customer device associated with a customer of aservice provider. The at least one processor may be configured to (i)process the received communications signal to determine a linearimpairment associated with the customer device, and (ii) determine,based at least in part on the linear impairment, a frequency range atwhich communications will be output by the service provider for receiptby the customer device.

Additional systems, methods, apparatus, features, and aspects may berealized through the techniques of various embodiments of the invention.Other embodiments and aspects of the invention are described in detailherein with reference to the description and to the drawings and areconsidered a part of the claimed invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are notnecessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of an example system that may beutilized to assign customers to groups for the transmission of broadbanddata signals, according to an illustrative embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of an example method for determiningequalization parameters for customer devices, according to an exampleembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of an example method for assigning customerdevices to groups for the transmission of broadband data signals,according to an example embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of an example method for monitoring theimpairments associated with a customer device and assigning the customerdevice to a group for the transmission of broadband data signals,according to an example embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the invention now will be described more fullyhereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in whichembodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be,embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limitedto the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments areprovided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and willfully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

Embodiments of the invention may include systems and methods forassigning customers and/or customer devices to groups for purposes ofcommunicating or transmitting broadband data signals. In one exampleembodiment, respective linear impairment information may be determinedany number of customers or customer devices. For example, impairmentcoefficient data may be determined for a customer, and an equalizationcoefficient may be calculated for the customer based at least in part onperforming a Fourier transform on the impairment coefficient data. Asdesired, a wide variety of impairment coefficient data may be determinedfor the customer, such as a frequency response, a phase, and/or a groupdelay.

Once linear impairment information has been determined for thecustomers, each of the customers may be assigned to one of a pluralityof groups based in part upon an analysis of the linear impairmentinformation. The customers assigned to each of the plurality of groupsmay be associated with similar linear impairments. In certainembodiments, customers having similar linear impairments may beidentified based at least in part on performing an inverse Fouriertransform on at least a portion of the determined linear impairment.

One or more frequencies for outputting or transmitting communications toeach of the plurality of groups may also be determined. For example, afrequency range for outputting communications for receipt by customersincluded in each group may be determined. In certain embodiments, thefrequency range determined for each group may be based at least in partupon the linear impairments or approximate linear impairments associatedwith the groups. For example, a first group having a relatively higheramount of linear impairment than a second group may be assigned a firstfrequency range that is lower than a second frequency range assigned tothe second group. In this regard, lower frequency ranges may be assignedto groups having higher linear impairments. A wide variety of frequencyranges may be assigned to each of the groups. For example, in certainembodiments, a downstream frequency range may be divided intoapproximately two hundred megahertz (200 MHz) blocks, and each of thegroups may be assigned one of the blocks.

In certain embodiments, linear impairment information may beperiodically and/or continuously determined for one or more of thecustomers. In this regard, the customers may be dynamically assigned togroups. For example, second linear impairment information may bedetermined for a customer, and the customer may be reassigned to adifferent group based upon an identified change in the linear impairmentinformation for the customer. As one example, a customer may be assignedto a group having a lower frequency range as the linear impairmentsassociated with the customer increase. Additionally, as customers arereassigned to different groups, equipment maintenance may be directed orrequested. For example, it may be determined that coaxial cable or otherphysical equipment utilized to communicate signals to a customer hasbeen degraded to a sufficient degree to merit replacement.

System Overview

An example system 100 for assigning customers to groups for outputtingor transmitting broadband signals will now be described illustrativelywith respect to FIG. 1. The system 100 may include, for example, one ormore service provider systems 105 and/or any number of customer devices110 or programming processing components. Any number of suitable serviceprovider networks 115 (e.g., cable networks, etc.) may facilitatecommunications between the service provider systems 105 and the customerdevices 110. In certain embodiments, the service provider system 105 mayreceive data and/or data streams from any number of content providers.The service provider system 105 may also generate various data and/ordata streams. The service provider system 105 may process receivedand/or generated data, and output any number of broadband communicationssignals and/or data streams for receipt by the one or more customerdevices 110.

In certain embodiments, the service provider system 105 may include anynumber of suitable components or subsystems, such as one or more cablemodem termination systems (“CMTSs”) 120, one or more service providercomputers 125, and/or other service provider components. As desired,these various components may facilitate the identification ofimpairments associated with customer devices 110 and/or the assignmentof the customer devices 110 to groups. For example, a CMTS 120 or othersuitable headend controller may facilitate an adaptive equalizationprocess to determine impairment data associated with the customerdevices 110. The service provider computers 125 may process theimpairment data in order to group the customer devices 110 and/ordetermine one or more frequencies at which broadband signals will beoutput for communication to the customer devices 110. In certainembodiments, the service provider system 105 may include systemsassociated with a cable service provider or other service provider.Additionally, as desired, the service provider system 105 may includeany number of other components, such as a conditional access systemcontroller, any number of encryption devices, an electronic programguide data server, an on-demand server, a pay-per-view purchase server,a billing system, a profile server, etc.

As desired, one or more components of the system 100 may beprocessor-driven components or devices. In this regard, certaincomponents of the system 100 may be configured for accessing and readingassociated computer-readable media having stored thereon data and/orcomputer-executable instructions for implementing the various methods ofthe invention. Additionally, in certain embodiments, certain componentsof the system 100 may be optional and/or combined. For example, a CMTS120 and service provider computer 125 may be implemented as a singlecomponent.

The CMTS 120 may be a suitable component or system configured to outputand/or provide data services to customers of the service provider. Forexample, the CMTS 120 may be configured to output one or more broadbanddata signals for receipt by the customer devices 110. Additionally, theCMTS 120 may be configured to receive and process upstream signals thatare output by the customer devices 110. In certain embodiments of theinvention, the CMTS 120 may be configured to facilitate an adaptiveequalization process for one or more of the customer devices 110. Inthis regard, the CMTS 120 may facilitate compensation for signal echoesand/or other impairments.

In certain embodiments, the CMTS 120 may include one or moreprocessor-driven devices, such as a personal computer, a digitalassistant, a personal digital assistant, a digital tablet, an Internetappliance, an application-specific circuit, a microcontroller, aminicomputer, or any other processor-based device. The execution ofsuitable computer-implemented instructions or computer-executableinstructions by the CMTS 120 may form a special purpose computer orother particular machine that is operable to facilitate the adaptiveequalization of the customer devices 110 and/or the determination ofimpairments associated with the customer devices 110.

The CMTS 120 may include one or more processors 131, one or more memorydevices 132, one or more input/output (“I/O”) interfaces 133, and/or oneor more network interfaces 134. The processor(s) 131 may be configuredto execute any number of software applications and/or computer-readableor computer-executable instructions. The memory devices 132 may includeany number of suitable memory devices, such as caches, read-only memorydevices, random access memory devices, magnetic storage devices, etc.The memory devices 132 may store data, executable instructions, and/orvarious program modules utilized by the processor(s) 131. Examples ofdata that may be stored by the memory devices 132 include data files 135and/or any number of suitable program modules that may be executed bythe processor(s) 131, such as an operating system (“OS”) 136 and/or anequalization module 137 or equalization application.

The data files 135 may include any suitable data that facilitates theoperation of the CMTS 120 and/or the management of one or more customerdevices 110. For example, the data files 135 may include, but are notlimited to, information associated with content output by the serviceprovider, information associated with received upstream communication,information associated with the customer devices 110, distortioninformation, attenuation information, and/or equalization and/or errorcorrection information. The OS 136 may be a suitable software modulethat controls the general operation of the CMTS 120. The OS 136 may alsofacilitate the execution of other software modules, for example, theequalization module 137.

The equalization module 137 may be a suitable software module orsoftware application that is configured to identify impairments and/ordistortions associated with the customer devices 110. Additionally, theequalization module 137 may be configured to facilitate adaptiveequalization of the customer devices 110. In operation, a signal, suchas a status symbol or other upstream signal, may be received from acustomer device 110 and provided to the equalization module 137. Theequalization module 137 may evaluate or analyze the signal and calculatean amount of distortion associated with the customer device 110. Forexample, one or more impairment coefficients for the customer device110, such as a frequency response, a phase, and/or a group delay, may bedetermined.

Based upon the calculated distortion and/or impairment coefficients, theequalization module 137 may calculate an equalization coefficient forthe customer device 110. In certain embodiments, the equalizationcoefficient may be determined based at least in part upon performing aFourier transform on the impairment coefficients and/or distortioninformation. For example, impairment coefficient data combined withfrequency and channel width may be processed by a Fourier transform tocalculate an equalization coefficient. Once an equalization coefficientis calculated, the equalization coefficient may be communicated to thecustomer device 110. The customer device 110 may utilize theequalization coefficient to pre-distort received signals and compensatefor distortions and/or impairments added to the signal. As desired,following the pre-distortion, the customer device 110 may communicateanother signal to the CMTS 120 that may be processed to calculate arevised equalization coefficient that is output to the customer device110. This process may be repeated in an adaptive manner to correct orcompensate for distortions and/or impairments.

In addition to calculating equalization coefficients for the customerdevices 110, the CMTS 120 may identify, calculate, or determineimpairment information for the customer devices 110. For example, theCMTS 120 may calculate or determine respective linear impairmentinformation for the customer devices 110. Once calculated, theimpairment information may be provided to the service provider computer125 for further processing in order to assign customer devices to groupsor virtual nodes. One example of the operations that may be performed bythe equalization module 137 is described in greater detail below withreference to FIG. 2.

With continued reference to the CMTS 120, the one or more I/O interfaces133 may facilitate communication between the CMTS 120 and one or moreinput/output devices, for example, one or more user interface devices,such as a display, keypad, mouse, pointing device, control panel, touchscreen display, remote control, microphone, speaker, etc., thatfacilitate user interaction with the CMTS 120. In this regard, usercommands (e.g., programming commands, etc.) may be received by the CMTS120. The one or more network interfaces 134 may facilitate connection ofthe CMTS 120 to any number of suitable networks, for example, one ormore local area networks that facilitate communication with othercomponents of the service provider system 105 and/or one or more serviceprovider networks 115 or broadband networks (e.g., a cable network, ahybrid fiber coaxial (“FIFC”) network, etc.) that facilitatecommunication with any number of customer devices 110. In this regard,the CMTS 120 may communicate with other components of the system 100.

With continued reference to FIG. 1, any number of service providercomputers 125 may be associated with the service provider system 105. Aservice provider computer 125 may be a suitable processor-driven deviceconfigured to assign customer devices to groups for the output ofdownstream data signals. Examples of suitable processor-driven devicesthat may be utilized as a service provider computer 125 include, but arenot limited to, a personal computer, a digital assistant, a personaldigital assistant, a digital tablet, an Internet appliance, anapplication-specific circuit, a microcontroller, a minicomputer, or anyother processor-based device. The execution of suitablecomputer-implemented instructions or computer-executable instructions bythe service provider computer 125 may form a special purpose computer orother particular machine that is operable to facilitate theidentification of customer devices having similar impairments and/or theassignment of the customer devices 110 to groups.

The service provider computer 125 may include one or more processors141, one or more memory devices 142, one or more input/output (“I/O”)interfaces 143, and/or one or more network interfaces 144. Theprocessor(s) 141 may be configured to execute any number of softwareapplications and/or computer-readable or computer-executableinstructions. The memory devices 142 may include any number of suitablememory devices, such as caches, read-only memory devices, random accessmemory devices, magnetic storage devices, etc. The memory devices 142may store data, executable instructions, and/or various program modulesutilized by the processor(s) 141. Examples of data that may be stored bythe memory devices 142 include data files 145 and/or any number ofsuitable program modules that may be executed by the processor(s) 141,such as an operating system (“OS”) 146 and/or a virtual node module 147or virtual node application.

The data files 145 may include any suitable data that facilitates theoperation of the service provider computer 125 and/or the assignment ofcustomer devices 110 to groups. For example, the data files 145 mayinclude, but are not limited to, information associated with one or morecustomer devices 110, impairment data associated with customer devices110, information associated with available groups or available virtualnodes for assignment, and/or information associated with one or morefrequencies for outputting signals for communication to the customerdevices 110. The OS 146 may be a suitable software module that controlsthe general operation of the service provider computer 125. The OS 146may also facilitate the execution of other software modules, forexample, the virtual node module 147.

The virtual node module 147 may be a suitable software module orsoftware application that is configured to assign customer devices 110and/or customers to groups for the communication or transmission ofbroadband data signals. In operation, the virtual node module 147 mayreceive and/or identify information associated with impairments for oneor more customer devices 110. For example, the virtual node module 147may receive linear impairment information from the equalization module137 of the CMTS 120. The virtual node module 147 may process theimpairment information in order to identify customer devices 110 havingsimilar impairments. In certain embodiments, the virtual node module 147may perform an inverse Fourier transform on the linear impairmentsinformation. For example, an inverse Fourier transform may be performedto generate a distribution of customer devices 110. The virtual nodemodule 147 may sort the customer devices 110 into groups, and eachcustomer device 110 assigned to a particular group may have similarlinear impairments. In certain embodiments, a different frequency and/ordifferent range of frequencies may be utilized for each of therespective groups to communicate broadband signals to the customerdevices 110 assigned to the respective groups.

Any number of groups may be utilized as desired in various embodimentsof the invention. In certain embodiments, one or more downstreamfrequency bands or ranges may be divided into bands for each of thegroups. For example, a downstream frequency band spanning fromapproximately eighty-eight megahertz (88 MHz) to approximately onegigahertz (1 GHz) may be subdivided, and each subdivision may beassociated with a respective group of customer devices 110. In certainembodiments, approximately equal subdivisions may be formed forassignment to the groups. For example, the frequency band may besubdivided into components having bandwidths of approximately twohundred megahertz (200 MHz) (or some other value), and each group may beassociated with a respective component. In other embodiments, one ormore subdivisions of a downstream frequency band may have differingbandwidths. Indeed, a downstream frequency band may be subdivided in awide variety of different ways.

According to an aspect of the invention, the linear impairmentsassociated with the customer devices 110 may be taken into accountduring the assignment of the customer devices 110 to groups.Additionally, groups associated with relatively greater linearimpairments may be associated with relatively lower frequency ranges.For example, customer devices 110 having relatively low impairments maybe associated with a group having a relatively high frequency range, andcustomer devices 110 having relatively high impairments may beassociated with a group having a relatively low frequency range. As aresult, the downstream frequency band may be divided in order tomaximize the capabilities of physical equipment (e.g., coaxial cables)and reduce maintenance requirements.

In certain embodiments, linear impairment information may beperiodically and/or continuously determined for the customers. Thevirtual node module 147 may periodically and/or continuously evaluatethe linear impairment information for the customer devices 110 anddynamically assign the customer devices 110 to groups. For example,second linear impairment information may be determined by theequalization module 137 for a customer device 110, and the virtual nodemodule 147 may reassign the customer device 110 to a different groupbased upon an identified change in the linear impairment information forthe customer. As one example, the customer device 110 may be reassignedfrom a first group to a second group having a lower frequency range asthe linear impairments associated with the customer device 110 increase.Additionally, as customer devices 110 are reassigned to differentgroups, equipment maintenance may be directed or requested by thevirtual node module 147. For example, it may be determined that coaxialcable or other physical equipment utilized to communicate signals to oneor more customer devices 110 has been degraded to a sufficient degree tomerit replacement.

The operations for the virtual node module 147 described above areprovided by way of example only. A wide variety of other operations maybe performed by the virtual node module 147 as desired in variousembodiments of the invention. A few examples of the operations that maybe performed by the virtual node module 147 are described in greaterdetail below with reference to FIGS. 3-4.

As desired, any number of virtual node databases 148 and/or otherdatabases may be provided. The databases 148 may store a wide variety ofinformation associated with the customer devices 110 and/or the groupsto which the customer devices 110 are assigned. Examples of informationthat may be stored in the databases 148 include, but are not limited to,information associated with available groups, frequency ranges assignedto the groups, linear impairment information associated with thecustomer devices 110, information associated with the assignment ofcustomer devices 110 to the groups, information associated with thereassignment of customer devices 110 to different groups, and/orinformation associated with directed maintenance and/or identifiedequipment failures. In certain embodiments, the databases 148 may bestored in the memory devices 142 associated with the service providercomputers 125. In other embodiments, the databases 148 may be stored byone or more external devices and/or systems. Additionally, the databases148 may be accessible by the virtual node module 147.

With continued reference to the service provider computer 125, the oneor more I/O interfaces 143 may facilitate communication between theservice provider computer 125 and one or more input/output devices, forexample, one or more user interface devices, such as a display, keypad,mouse, pointing device, control panel, touch screen display, remotecontrol, microphone, speaker, etc., that facilitate user interactionwith the service provider computer 125. In this regard, user commands(e.g., programming commands, etc.) may be received by the serviceprovider computer 125. The one or more network interfaces 144 mayfacilitate connection of the service provider computer 125 to any numberof suitable networks, for example, one or more local area networks thatfacilitate communication with other components of the service providersystem 105. In this regard, the service provider computer 125 maycommunicate with the CMTS 120 and/or other components of the system 100.

With continued reference to FIG. 1, any number of customer devices 110may be provided. Each customer device 110 may be a suitable device orcomponent, such as a suitable processor-driven device, that facilitatesthe receipt and/or processing of broadband signals, such as a broadbandcable signal. In certain embodiments, the customer device 110 may be adevice or component that is situated within a customer's household orother structure associated with the customer. The customer device 110may include suitable hardware and/or software components capable ofreceiving and processing a broadband signal (e.g., a cable signal, etc.)output by a service provider system 105. Examples of a suitable customerdevice 110 include, but are not limited to, a set-top box (“STB”) (e.g.,a cable STB, a digital satellite STB, an Internet Protocol TelevisionSTB, etc.), a virtual STB, an embedded STB, etc.

In certain embodiments, the customer devices 110 may be connected to oneor more display devices, such as a television, associated with acustomer. In other embodiments, the customer devices 110 may beembedded, incorporated into, and/or executed on a display device. Inoperation, the customer devices 110 may receive at least a portion of abroadband data signal output by the service provider system 105, and thecustomer devices 110 may convert at least a portion of the receivedsignal into content which is displayed or otherwise output by thedisplay device. As desired, the customer devices 110 may receive abroadband data signal via any number of suitable service providernetworks 115, such as a cable network that includes any number ofoptical fibers, coaxial cables, and/or cable drops. Additionally, anynumber of intermediary devices, such as broadband modems, routers, etc.,may be situated between the service provider system 105 and the customerdevices 110.

Each customer device 110 may be a suitable processor-driven deviceconfigured to receive broadband signals and provide broadband servicesto customers of the service provider. For example, each customer device110 may include a digital assistant, a personal digital assistant, adigital tablet, an Internet appliance, an application-specific circuit,a microcontroller, a minicomputer, or any other processor-based device.The execution of suitable computer-implemented instructions orcomputer-executable instructions by the customer device 110 may form aspecial purpose computer or other particular machine operable tofacilitate the receipt and processing of broadband signals.Additionally, the execution of computer-implemented instructions orcomputer-executable instructions by the customer device 110 may form aspecial purpose computer or other particular machine operable tofacilitate the communication of upstream signals to the service providersystem.

The customer device 110 may include one or more processors 151, one ormore memory devices 152, one or more input/output (“I/O”) interfaces153, and/or one or more network interfaces 154. The processor(s) 151 maybe configured to execute any number of software applications and/orcomputer-readable or computer-executable instructions. The memorydevices 152 may include any number of suitable memory devices, such ascaches, read-only memory devices, random access memory devices, magneticstorage devices, etc. The memory devices 152 may store data, executableinstructions, and/or various program modules utilized by theprocessor(s) 151, such as data files 155, an operating system (“OS”)156, an equalization module 157, and/or a programming module 158.

The data files 155 may include any suitable data that facilitates theoperation of the customer device 110. Examples of information that maybe stored in the data files 155 include, but are not limited to,information associated with the customer device 110, informationassociated with available services that may be provided by the customerdevice 110, user preferences, and/or equalization information. The OS156 may be a suitable software module that controls the generaloperation of the customer device 110. The OS 156 may also facilitate theexecution of other software modules, for example, the equalizationmodule 157 and/or the programming module 158.

The equalization module 157 may be a suitable software module orsoftware application configured to perform adaptive equalization for thecustomer device 110. For example, the equalization module 157 mayactively correct signal echoes and other linear impairments. Inoperation, the equalization module 157 may direct the communication of asignal to the CMTS 120. In certain embodiments, the signal may be asignal generated by the equalization module, such as a signal containinga status of the customer device 110. in other embodiments, the signalmay be a reflection or echo of a signal output by the CMTS 120. Due tointerferences and/or impairments within the distribution network, thesignal communicated to the CMTS 120 may include a wide variety ofdifferent distortions and/or modulation errors. As explained in greaterdetail above, the equalization module 137 of the CMTS 120 may receivethe signal, determine a linear impairment associated with the customerdevice 110, and provide an equalization coefficient and/orpre-distortion information to the customer device 110. The equalizationmodule 157 of the customer device 110 may then utilize the equalizationcoefficient to pre-distort a received broadband signal in order tocompensate for the distortions and linear impairments. Additionally, theprocessing of the equalization module 157 may be periodically and/orcontinuously performed in order to correct modulation errors.

The programming module 158 may be a suitable software module or softwareapplication configured to process received broadband signals, processthe broadband signals, and provide broadband services to users of thecustomer device 110. For example, the programming module 158 may processreceived television programming data and output audio and/or visual datafor presentation to users of the customer device 110. As anotherexample, the programming module 158 may process received data to provideelectronic program guide services to users of the customer device 110.Additionally, the programming module 158 may provide a wide variety ofupstream communications to the service provider system 105, such as userrequests for on-demand programming and/or pay-per-view programming.

With continued reference to the customer device 110, the one or more I/Ointerfaces 153 may facilitate communication between the customer device110 and one or more input/output devices, for example, one or more userinterface devices, such as a remote control, microphone, speaker,display, etc., that facilitate user interaction with the customer device110. In this regard, user commands (e.g., programming commands, etc.)may be received by the customer device 110, and data associated withbroadband services may be output for presentation to users of thecustomer device 110. The one or more network interfaces 154 mayfacilitate connection of the customer device 110 to any number ofsuitable networks, for example, the one or more service providernetworks 115.

Communications between various components of the system 100 may befacilitated via any number of suitable networks, such as one or moreservice provider networks 115 (e.g., a cable network). The networks 115may include any number of components and/or communications devices, suchas optical fibers, fiber nodes, coaxial cable, amplifiers, cable taps,and/or cable drops. In certain embodiments, the physical componentsassociated with the networks 115 may introduce distortions and/orimpairments that are addressed by embodiments of the invention.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the system 100shown in and described with respect to FIG. 1 is provided by way ofexample only. Numerous other operating environments, systemarchitectures, and device configurations are possible. Other systemembodiments can include fewer or greater numbers of components and mayincorporate some or all of the functionality described with respect tothe system components shown in FIG. 1.

Operational Overview

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of an example method 200 for determiningequalization parameters for customer devices, according to an exampleembodiment of the invention. In certain embodiments, the method 200 maybe performed by a suitable service provider system and/or equalizationmodule, such as the service provider system 105 and/or the equalizationmodule 137 illustrated in FIG. 1. The method 200 may begin at block 205.

At block 205, one or more signals, such as broadband communicationssignals and/or equalization signals, may be output for communication toone or more customer devices, such as the customer devices 110illustrated in FIG. 1. The signals may be processed by the customerdevices 110, and respective return signals may be received from thecustomer devices 110 at block 210. For example, output signals may bereflected or echoed from the customer devices 110 in order tocommunicate return signals. The received return signals may be processedin order to identify impairment information associated with each of thecustomer devices 110 and to generate equalization coefficients and/orequalization information for the customer devices 110.

At block 215, a next customer device 110 may be selected for processing.At block 220, a determination may be made as to whether the end of thecustomer devices 110 has been reached. If it is determined at block 220that the end of the customer devices 110 has been reached, thenoperations may end. If, however, it is determined at block 220 that theend of the customer devices 110 has not been reached, then operationsmay continue at block 225.

At block 225, a signal received from the selected customer device 110may be processed in order to determine an amount of distortion and/orlinear impairment associated with the customer device 110. For example,one or more impairment coefficients for the customer device 110, such asa frequency response, a phase, and/or a group delay, may be determined.Based upon the calculated distortion and/or impairment coefficients, oneor more equalization parameters, such as an equalization coefficient,may be calculated for the customer device 110 at block 230. In certainembodiments, an equalization coefficient may be determined based atleast in part upon performing a Fourier transform on the impairmentcoefficients and/or distortion information. For example, impairmentcoefficient data combined with frequency and channel width may beprocessed by a Fourier transform to calculate an equalizationcoefficient.

Once one or more equalization parameters (.g., an equalizationcoefficient, etc.) are calculated, the equalization parameters may beoutput for communication to the customer device 110 at block 235. Thecustomer device 110 may utilize the equalization parameters topre-distort received signals and compensate for distortions and/orimpairments added to the signal. As desired, following thepre-distortion, the customer device 110 may communicate another signalthat may be processed to calculate one or more revised equalizationparameters that are output to the customer device 110. This process maybe repeated in an adaptive manner to correct or compensate fordistortions and/or impairments.

Following the communication of one or more equalization parameters, suchas an equalization coefficient, to the selected customer device at block235, operations may continue at block 215, and a next customer devicemay be selected for processing.

The method 200 may end following block 220.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of an example method 300 for assigning customerdevices to groups for the transmission of broadband data signals,according to an example embodiment of the invention. In certainembodiments, the operations of the method 300 may be performed by asuitable service provider system and/or virtual node module, such as theservice provider system 105 and/or the virtual node module 147illustrated in FIG. 1. The method 300 may begin at block 305.

At block 305, a signal, such as a status signal and/or an equalizationsignal, may be output by a service provider system 105 for communicationto any number of customer devices 110. For example, a signal may beoutput by a CMTS, such as the CMTS 120 illustrated in FIG. 1, forcommunication to a plurality of different customer devices 110. Asdesired in certain embodiments, a plurality of different signals may beoutput. During communication of the signal to a customer device 110, awide variety of impairments may be introduced into the signal. Forexample, impairments may be introduced by optical fiber nodes, cabletaps, amplifiers, coaxial cables, and/or other components of a cabledistribution network.

Once a signal is received by a customer device 110, a return signal maybe output by the customer device 110 for communication to the serviceprovider system 105. For example, the signal output by the serviceprovider system 105 may be echoed or reflected to the CMTS 120. As analternative to reflecting or returning a received signal, a statussignal or an equalization signal may be generated by the customer device110, and the generated signal may be output by the customer device 110for communication to the service provider system 105. The return signalsmay be received by the service provider system 105 at block 310.

Once signals and/or communications have been received by the serviceprovider system 105 for the plurality of customer devices 110, theservice provider system may process the signals at block 315 todetermine or calculate respective impairment coefficient data for eachof the customer devices 110. For example, a frequency response, a phase,and/or a group delay may be determined for each of the customer devices110. Additionally, an amount of distortion and/or impairment associatedwith each of the customer devices 110 may be determined.

At block 320, an equalization coefficient may be calculated for each ofthe customer devices 110. In certain embodiments, the equalizationcoefficients may be determined based at least in part upon performing aFourier transform on the impairment coefficients and/or distortioninformation. For example, impairment coefficient data combined withfrequency and channel width may be processed by a Fourier transform tocalculate an equalization coefficient for a customer device 110. Once anequalization coefficient is calculated for a customer device 110, theequalization coefficient may be communicated to the customer device 110.The customer device 110 may utilize the equalization coefficient topre-distort received signals and compensate for distortions and/orimpairments added to the signal. As desired, following thepre-distortion, the customer device 110 may communicate another signalto the CMTS 120 that may be processed to calculate a revisedequalization coefficient that is output to the customer device 110. Thisprocess may be repeated in an adaptive manner to correct or compensatefor distortions and/or impairments.

At block 325, the impairment information for the customer devices 110may be utilized to identify customer devices 110 having similar linearimpairments. In certain embodiments, an inverse Fourier transform may beperformed on the linear impairment information to generate adistribution of customer devices 110. At block 330, the customer devices110 may be sorted into groups, and each customer device 110 assigned toa particular group may have similar linear impairments. At block 335, arespective output frequency or frequency range may be identified ordetermined for each of the groups of customer devices 110. In certainembodiments, a different frequency and/or different range of frequenciesmay be utilized for each of the respective groups to communicatebroadband signals to the customer devices 110 assigned to the respectivegroups.

According to an aspect of the invention, the linear impairmentsassociated with the customer devices 110 may be taken into accountduring the assignment of the customer devices 110 to groups.Additionally, groups associated with relatively greater linearimpairments may be associated with relatively lower frequency ranges.For example, customer devices 110 having relatively low impairments maybe associated with a group having a relatively high frequency range, andcustomer devices 110 having relatively high impairments may beassociated with a group having a relatively low frequency range. As aresult, the downstream frequency band may be divided in order tomaximize the capabilities of physical equipment (e.g., coaxial cables)and reduce maintenance requirements.

At block 340, the linear impairments associated with each of theplurality of customer devices 110 may be periodically or continuouslymonitored. Additionally, the assignments of customer devices 110 to thevarious groups of customer devices 110 may be dynamically adjusted. Forexample, if a relatively greater amount of linear impairment isdetermined for a customer device 110, the customer device may beassigned to a group having a lower range of output frequencies.Additionally, changes in linear impairments may be utilized to identifyphysical equipment, such as coaxial cables, that should be serviced orreplaced. As desired, maintenance may be directed based upon identifiedchanges in linear impairments and/or reassignments of customer devices110.

The method 300 may end following either block 335 or block 340.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of an example method 400 for monitoring theimpairments associated with a customer device and assigning the customerdevice to a group for the transmission of broadband data signals,according to an example embodiment of the invention. In certainembodiments, the operations of the method 400 may be performed by asuitable service provider system and/or virtual node module, such as theservice provider system 105 and/or the virtual node module 147illustrated in FIG. 1. The method 400 may begin at block 405.

At block 405, one or more signals, such as a status signal and/or anequalization signal, may be output by a service provider system 105 forcommunication to a customer device, such as the customer device 110illustrated in FIG. 1. For example, a signal may be output by a CMTS,such as the CMTS 120 illustrated in FIG. 1. During communication of thesignal to a customer device 110, a wide variety of impairments may beintroduced into the signal. For example, impairments may be introducedby optical fiber nodes, cable taps, amplifiers, coaxial cables, and/orother components of a cable distribution network.

Once a signal is received by the customer device 110, a return signalmay be output by the customer device 110 for communication to theservice provider system 105. For example, the signal output by theservice provider system 105 may be echoed or reflected to the CMTS 120.As an alternative to reflecting or returning a received signal, a statussignal or an equalization signal may be generated by the customer device110, and the generated signal may be output by the customer device 110for communication to the service provider system 105. The return signalmay be received by the service provider system 105 at block 410.

At block 415, the service provider system may process the return signalto determine or calculate impairment coefficient data for the customerdevice 110. For example, a frequency response, a phase, and/or a groupdelay may be determined for the customer device 110. Additionally, anamount of distortion and/or impairment associated with each of thecustomer devices 110 may be determined. At block 420, an equalizationcoefficient may be calculated for the customer device 110. In certainembodiments, the equalization coefficient may be determined based atleast in part upon performing a Fourier transform on the impairmentcoefficients and/or distortion information. For example, impairmentcoefficient data combined with frequency and channel width may beprocessed by a Fourier transform to calculate an equalizationcoefficient for the customer device 110. Once an equalizationcoefficient is calculated for the customer device 110, the equalizationcoefficient may be communicated to the customer device 110. The customerdevice 110 may utilize the equalization coefficient to pre-distortreceived signals and compensate for distortions and/or impairments addedto the signal. As desired, following the pre-distortion, the customerdevice 110 may communicate another signal to the CMTS 120 that may beprocessed to calculate a revised equalization coefficient that is outputto the customer device 110. This process may be repeated in an adaptivemanner to correct or compensate for distortions and/or impairments.

At block 425, the impairment information for the customer device 110 maybe utilized to identify one or more other customer devices havingsimilar linear impairments. In certain embodiments, an inverse Fouriertransform may be performed on the linear impairment information togenerate a distribution of customer devices, and devices having similarlinear impairments may be identified. At block 430, the customer device110 may be assigned to a group of customer devices having similar linearimpairments. Additionally, at block 435, a respective output frequencyor frequency range may be identified or determined for outputtingsignals (e.g., broadband signals) to the customer device 110. Forexample, a frequency range associated with the group to which thecustomer device 110 is assigned may be identified as a frequency rangefor outputting signals to the customer device 110.

As desired in various embodiments of the invention, the linearimpairments associated with the customer device 110 may be periodicallyor continuously monitored. As a result, the customer device 110 may bedynamically reassigned to another group of customer devices. Forexample, if an increase in the linear impairments associated with thecustomer device 110 is identified, then the customer device 110 may bereassigned to another group having a relatively lower output frequencyrange. In this regard, the physical limitations of a service networkthat facilitates communications with the customer device 110 may betaken into consideration.

At block 440, a determination may be made as to whether a change in thegroup assignment for the customer device 110 has been identified. If itis determined at block 440 that no change has been identified, thenoperations may continue at block 405, and the customer device 110 maycontinue to be monitored. For example, one or more equalization signalsmay continue to be output to the customer device 110 to facilitate thedetermination of linear impairments. If, however, it is determined atblock 440 that the customer device 110 has been reassigned to anothergroup of customer devices, then operations may continue at block 445.

At block 445, a determination may be made as to whether maintenanceshould be performed for the customer device 110 and/or service providerequipment associated with the customer device. For example, adetermination may be made as to whether one or more coaxial cablesand/or terminations associated with the customer device have degraded toa sufficient level such that the equipment should be replaced orotherwise serviced. If it is determined at block 445 that no maintenanceshould be performed, then operations may continue at block 405, and thecustomer device 110 may continue to be monitored. If, however, it isdetermined at block 445 that maintenance should be performed or that amaintenance evaluation has been triggered, then operations may continueat block 450.

At block 450, maintenance for equipment associated with the customerdevice 110 may be directed. For example, one or more technicians may bedispatched to evaluate, service, and/or replace equipment associatedwith the customer device 110. In certain embodiments, the monitoring ofa plurality of customer devices may be taken into account during thedirection of maintenance. For example, a determination may be made thata coaxial cable supplying service to a plurality of households hasdegraded. Following block 450, operations may continue at block 405, andthe customer device 110 may continue to be monitored

In certain embodiments, the method 400 may be performed in a repeatingor looping manner in order to continuously monitor the customer device110.

The operations described and shown in the methods 200, 300, and 400 ofFIGS. 2-4 may be carried out or performed in any suitable order asdesired in various embodiments of the invention. Additionally, incertain embodiments, at least a portion of the operations may be carriedout in parallel. Furthermore, in certain embodiments, less than or morethan the operations described in FIGS. 2-4 may be performed.

Various block and/or flow diagrams of systems, methods, apparatus,and/or computer program products according to example embodiments of theinvention are described above. It will be understood that one or moreblocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams, and combinations ofblocks in the block diagrams and flow diagrams, respectively, can beimplemented by computer-executable program instructions. Likewise, someblocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams may not necessarily needto be performed in the order presented, or may not necessarily need tobe performed at all, according to some embodiments of the invention.

These computer-executable program instructions may be loaded onto aspecial purpose computer or other particular machine, a processor, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a particularmachine, such that the instructions that execute on the computer,processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus create meansfor implementing one or more functions specified in the flow diagramblock or blocks. These computer program instructions may also be storedin a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or otherprogrammable data processing apparatus to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readablememory produce an article of manufacture including instruction meansthat implement one or more functions specified in the flow diagram blockor blocks. As an example, embodiments of the invention may provide for acomputer program product, comprising a computer-usable medium having acomputer-readable program code or program instructions embodied therein,said computer-readable program code adapted to be executed to implementone or more functions specified in the flow diagram block or blocks. Thecomputer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer orother programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series ofoperational elements or steps to be performed on the computer or otherprogrammable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process suchthat the instructions that execute on the computer or other programmableapparatus provide elements or steps for implementing the functionsspecified in the flow diagram block or blocks.

Accordingly, blocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams supportcombinations of means for performing the specified functions,combinations of elements or steps for performing the specified functionsand program instruction means for performing the specified functions. Itwill also be understood that each block of the block diagrams and flowdiagrams, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and flowdiagrams, can be implemented by special purpose, hardware-based computersystems that perform the specified functions, elements or steps, orcombinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions.

Many modifications and other embodiments of the invention set forthherein will be apparent having the benefit of the teachings presented inthe foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Therefore, it isto be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the specificembodiments disclosed and that modifications and other embodiments areintended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a genericand descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.

1. A method, comprising: receiving, by a service provider systemassociated with a service provider and comprising one or more computers,a communications signal output by a customer device associated with acustomer of the service provider; processing, by the service providersystem, the received communications signal to determine a linearimpairment associated with the customer device; and determining, basedat least in part on the linear impairment, a frequency range at whichcommunications will be output by the service provider system for receiptby the customer device.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein processing thereceived communications signal comprises: determining, by the serviceprovider system, impairment coefficient data for the customer device;calculating, by the service provider system based at least in part onperforming a Fourier transform on the impairment coefficient data, anequalization coefficient for the customer device; and determining thelinear impairment based at least in part on the equalizationcoefficient.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein determining impairmentcoefficient data comprises determining at least one of (i) a frequencyresponse, (ii) a phase, or (iii) a group delay.
 4. The method of claim1, further comprising: assigning, by the service provider system basedat least in part upon the determined linear impairment, the customerdevice to a group of customer devices having similar linear impairments,wherein determining a frequency range comprises determining a frequencyrange for the group of customer devices.
 5. The method of claim 4,wherein assigning the customer device to a group of customer devicescomprises: identifying, by the service provider system based at least inpart upon performing an inverse Fourier transform, a plurality ofcustomer devices having similar linear impairments as the customerdevice; and assigning the customer device to a group including theidentified plurality of customer devices.
 6. The method of claim 4,wherein the communications signal comprises a first communicationssignal, the determined linear impairment comprises a first linearimpairment, and the group comprises a first group, and furthercomprising: receiving, by the service provider system, a secondcommunication signal output by the customer device; processing, by theservice provider system, the received second communications signal todetermine a second linear impairment associated with the customerdevice; and assigning, by the service provider system based at least inpart upon the second linear impairment, the customer device to a secondgroup of customer devices.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein thefrequency range comprises a first frequency range, wherein processingthe received second communications signal to determine a second linearimpairment comprises determining a second linear impairment that isgreater than the first linear impairment, and wherein assigning thecustomer device to a second group comprises assigning the customerdevice to a second group associated with a second frequency range lowerthan the first frequency range.
 8. The method of claim 6, furthercomprising: directing, by the service provider system based at least inpart upon assigning the customer device to the second group, maintenanceof equipment associated with the customer device.
 9. The method of claim1, wherein determining a frequency range comprises determining afrequency range having a bandwidth of approximately 200 Megahertz. 10.The method of claim 1, wherein receiving a communications signal outputby a customer device comprises receiving a communications signal outputby one of (i) a cable modem or (ii) a set-top box.
 11. A systemcomprising: at least one communications interface configured to receivea communications signal output by a customer device associated with acustomer of a service provider; and at least one processor configured to(i) process the received communications signal to determine a linearimpairment associated with the customer device, and (ii) determine,based at least in part on the linear impairment, a frequency range atwhich communications will be output by the service provider for receiptby the customer device.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the at leastone processor is configured to process the received communicationssignal by executing the computer-executable instructions to: determineimpairment coefficient data for the customer device; calculate, based atleast in part on performing a Fourier transform on the impairmentcoefficient data, an equalization coefficient for the customer device;and determine the linear impairment based at least in part on theequalization coefficient.
 13. The system of claim 12, wherein theimpairment coefficient data comprises at least one of (i) a frequencyresponse, (ii) a phase, or (iii) a group delay.
 14. The system of claim11, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to executethe computer-executable instructions to: assign, based at least in partupon the determined linear impairment, the customer device to a group ofcustomer devices having similar linear impairments, wherein thedetermined frequency range comprises a frequency range for the group ofcustomer devices.
 15. The system of claim 14, wherein the at least oneprocessor is configured to assign the customer device to a group ofcustomer devices by executing the computer-executable instructions to:identify, based at least in part upon performing an inverse Fouriertransform, a plurality of customer devices having similar linearimpairments as the customer device; and assign the customer device to agroup including the identified plurality of customer devices.
 16. Thesystem of claim 14, wherein: the communications signal comprises a firstcommunications signal; the determined linear impairment comprises afirst linear impairment; the group comprises a first group; and the atleast one processor is further configured to execute thecomputer-executable instructions to (i) receive a second communicationsignal output by the customer device, (ii) process the received secondcommunications signal to determine a second linear impairment associatedwith the customer device, and (iii) assign, based at least in part uponthe second linear impairment, the customer device to a second group ofcustomer devices.
 17. The system of claim 16, wherein: the frequencyrange comprises a first frequency range; the second linear impairment isgreater than the first linear impairment; and the second group isassociated with a second frequency range lower than the first frequencyrange.
 18. The system of claim 16, wherein the at least one processor isfurther configured to execute the computer-executable instructions to:direct, based at least in part upon assigning the customer device to thesecond group, maintenance of equipment associated with the customerdevice.
 19. The system of claim 11, wherein the frequency range has abandwidth of approximately 200 Megahertz.
 20. The system of claim 11,wherein the customer device comprises one of (i) a cable modem or (ii) aset-top box.